Pet grooming mitt with reservoir and medial concentric bristle patterns

ABSTRACT

A mitt grooms and washes a pet such as a dog or cat. The rubber mitt has a built-in reservoir, with discharge ports and massage nibs for efficient pet grooming. Purposeful patterns of densely placed rubber nibs along the longitudinally extending medial area of the palm side engage pet hairs, remove snags and loose hairs, and provide effective massage. The grooming mitt is molded of rubber, and includes a rigid thumb section which provides stability to the mitt, to permit more effective, rapid use and easy discharging of cleaning fluid from the entire surface of the palm side of the mitt.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to hand-worn tools for cleansing andgrooming pet animals.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The grooming and washing of a pet such as a dog usually involves the useof several implements such as sponges, brushes, shampoo bottles and soforth. In addition, implements with rigid handles can often cause painor injury to a squirming animal. The use of a glove, a mitten or otherhand held device expressly designed for the purpose can simplify theprocess.

The prior art reveals several inventions that are related to the petgrooming or allied processes using such devices.

Davis, U.S. Pat. No. 5,169,251 relates to a hand-worn dispenser in theform of a thin-walled glove with a self-contained receptacle for storingdry or liquid material to be dispensed by squeezing. Having conduitsextending from the reservoir along the fingers, sealed distal ends areseverable to vary the material discharge rates.

Damm, U.S. Pat. No. 5,009,195 reveals an animal grooming device that isa pad attached to a wide strap which folds over and attaches around thepalm of a hand. The pad has hook shaped bristles that are effective incontrolling shedding of hairs on animal coats of longhaired dogs orcats.

Moore, U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,335 describes a scrubber device with awaterproof mitt. This is a cleaning device for protecting the hand andproviding a bonded cleaning media such as a sponge or abrasive padcovering the palm and finger area. A reservoir for liquid, powder orpaste material is located at the wrist dispensing via conduits into thepalm pad.

Zielinski, U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,955 involves a therapeutic scrubbingmitten for cleansing the scalp of an infant. It is adapted for cleaningand rinsing with one hand while holding the infant with the other. Areservoir in the palm portion with a slit type seal for filling oremptying can be filled with rinsing water. Soft bristles facilitatescrubbing.

Wolgamuth, U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,349 relates to an ergonomic hand petwashing system consisting of one or two gloves that are worn by theuser. The glove or gloves are connected by a resilient hose to a supplyof pressurized water. Conduits on the palm side of the gloves split theflow into four streams discharging at the base of the fingers. Means areprovided to introduce shampoo into the water stream at a valve assemblyupstream of the gloves. A uniform distribution of rubber protrusions ornibs covers the palm and palm side of the glove fingers to aid inagitation of the liquid and massage of the animal.

Freulon, U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,572 describes an apparatus combining afluid chamber, comb and brush in a common housing hose connected to avacuum device to wash, comb, and dry an animal in a single operation.

Newkirk et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,768,709 describes a pet therapeuticglove with cutoff fingers and a thumb hole that can be used with orwithout a power-operated massager.

Lennon, U.S. Pat. No. 5,524,575 relates to an animal-grooming mitt witha rubber palm portion with nibs to facilitate removal of loose hairduring grooming. The body of the mitt may be made of rigid material.

Courtney et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,837 describes a pet glove withfingers or finger holes adaptable to use one or more resilient pads withbristles. In some embodiments, the bristle pads are removably attachedto the palm side of the glove.

Dowdy, U.S. Pat. No. 4,083,327 relates to a hand-held motor-drivenapparatus using a flexible toothed belt guided by two pulleys to removeanimal hairs, massage and distribute natural oils on an animal such as ahorse.

While these prior art devices solve some of the problems associated withpet grooming, they do not incorporate the unique combination of featuresof the present invention.

They do not provide a pet grooming mitt which includes a large reservoirfor dispensing cleaning fluid, such as shampoo, in an area extendingfrom the distal finger tip area to the wrist area of the user, whileproviding a bristle pattern that both grooms animal fur, whiledislodging fur hair snags during washing.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the objects of the present invention are as follows:

It is an object of the present invention to provide a pet grooming mittwhich includes a large reservoir for dispensing cleaning fluid, such asshampoo, from the whole hand area of a cleaning mitt, while alsoproviding a bristle pattern with a series of densely located bristlegroups extending axially through the work surface side of the glove, fordislodging animal fur hair snags during washing a pet animal.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a rubber mitt withbuilt-in reservoir and discharge and massage features for efficient petgrooming.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a purposeful patternof rubber nibs on the palm side to engage pet hairs, to remove loosehairs, and to provide effective massage.

It is another object of the present invention to permit the groomingmitten to be molded of rubber in a single cost-effective operation.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a rigid thumbsection to provide stability to the mitten to permit more effective andrapid use.

It is also an object of this invention to permit easy discharging ofcleaning fluid over the entire surface of the palm side of the mitt.

It is also an object of this invention to improve over the disadvantagesof the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In keeping with these objects and others which may become apparent, thepresent invention includes a cleaning mitt for the grooming and washingof a pet, such as a cat or dog, which replaces the need for separateimplements such as sponges, brushes, shampoo bottles and so forth. Thecleaning mitt is gentle during washing of a squirming animal.

The present invention is preferably a rubber mitt with a built-inflexible reservoir for cleaning fluids, such as shampoo. In a preferredembodiment, the reservoir extends all the way from the distal fingertipend to the wrist end of the mitt. A plurality of valves arestrategically placed throughout the palm side of the mitt to distributea plurality of streams of fluid from the mitt.

In a preferred embodiment the mitt has a deliberately dense pattern ofrubber nibs along the mid-line on the palm side of the mitt to engagepet hairs, to loosen hair snags and remove loose hairs, and to massagethe animal's fur coat.

Furthermore, the grooming mitten is preferably molded of a strong,flexible material, such as rubber.

Optionally, a rigid thumb section has a longitudinally extending thicksection to add structural stability to the mitt during use, so that itcan be guided along the backs and other fur surfaces of a pet animalbeing cleaned. This rigid thumb section enables a user to gently glidethe mitt over the animal, while easily discharging cleaning fluid fromthe entire surface of the palm side of the mitt.

The mitt has a selected pattern of flexible nibs, such as rubber nibs orbristles, protruding from the palm side of the mitt. The reservoirincludes a reservoir filling port with an integrally molded stopper, andan optional hanging tab with a hole for drying mitt after wet use.

For example, there is a plurality of circular nib patterns, such asfour, including a central nib with two concentric circles of nibs. Thesecircular patterns are especially effective at massage and for removingloose hairs when a circular scrubbing motion is used. These denserpatterns of nibs generally extend axially along a mid-line of the gloveextending from the closed distal fingertip end to the open wrist end ofthe mitt.

The high density of nibs in these regions provides a substantial force,which can be exerted against the fur and hide of the animal withoutcollapsing the nibs from their perpendicular direction of use, eventhough they are fabricated of the same soft rubber material of the restof mitt.

To effectively discharge shampoo over the entire mitt area, the fluidreservoir extends over the entire palm and finger portions of the mitt.Discharge of the shampoo is through openable valves, such as crossedknife slits, which are distributed over the cleaning palm side surfaceof the mitt. These slit openings are the fluid discharge openings, whichnormally remain closed when no internal pressure is built up and thepalm is kept essentially flat.

When, however, the mitt is flexed so that the nib bearing cleaning sideassumes a concave configuration, an internal pressure builds up, and thecrossed knife slits constrict in length, so that their respective edgesbow out and open for discharge of fluid, such as shampoo, therethrough.

In the rigid thumb embodiment, the thumb portion has a thumbhole, whichis surrounded by rubber, which is substantially thicker at the top. Thisthickness of the thumb portion helps make the mitten more rigid, withless tendency to collapse during use, while the palm section can stillbe flexed to conform to the animal's contours.

In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the thumb is no longerreinforced or rigidized by a thick top section, for use in cleaningsmaller animals where more flexibility is needed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention can best be understood in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the mitt of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the palm side thereof;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the mitt of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the mitt showing a hand cavity,thumb hole, and fluid reservoir;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the mitt shown discharging cleaningfluid therefrom; and,

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of an alternate embodiment of the mitt;and,

FIG. 7 is an alternate embodiment for a brush version of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The pet grooming mitt or mitten of this invention is shown in FIG. 1.Preferably, it includes molded rubber mitt 1 with rubber nibs 2protruding from the palm side with thumb section 3, an internalreservoir 11 having a reservoir filling port 5, integrally moldedstopper 6, and hanging tab 7 with a hole. Hollow hand cavity 4 is shownunder fluid reservoir 11.

FIG. 2 shows a palm side view with reservoir port 5 open and stopper 6attached via strap 12. A plurality of nib patterns 9, such as four,preferably circular, include a central nib with two concentric circlesof nibs. These nib patterns 9 are especially effective at massage, inloosening fur hair snags and in removing loose hairs, when a circularmotion is applied with mitt 1 to the animal's fur and hide.

The high density of nibs 2 in these circular regions of nib patterns 9insures that a substantial force can be exerted against the hide of theanimal without collapsing the nibs 2 (such as rubber bristles) fromtheir perpendicular direction even though they are fabricated of thesame soft rubber material of the rest of mitt 1.

It is further noted that preferably these patterns 9 of denser placednibs 2 in circular patterns extend axially along a mid line of mitt 1,from closed distal end la to open wrist end 1b of mitt 1.

A similar design feature that compensates for the softness of the rubberused is rigid thumb 3, which is facilitated by thick section 8 shown inphantom lines. This can be seen in the side view of FIG. 3 as well.Fluid reservoir 11 preferably extends over the entire palm area of mitt1.

For fluid discharge, valves, such as several crossed knife slits 10, aredistributed over the work surface of the palm side of mitt 1. Theseslits 10 are the fluid discharge openings, which normally remain closedwhen no internal pressure is built up and the palm is kept essentiallyflat.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of mitt 1 at line A--A of FIG. 2. Handcavity 4 as well as fluid reservoir 11 can be clearly seen. Thumbsection 3 appears detached because of the line of the cross section.Thumb hole 15 is surrounded by rubber which is substantially thicker attop 8 thereof, which helps make mitt 1 more rigid with less tendency tocollapse, while the palm section can still be flexed to conform to theanimal's contours.

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of mitt 1 in use but spaced momentarilyaway from the animal's surface 20 to view the pattern of fluid drips 22from discharge slits 10 as the palm section of mitt 1 is flexed downwardin a concave pattern, thereby distorting discharge slits 10 andpressurizing reservoir 11. FIG. 5 also shows stopper 6 in a sealingposition and that the user's arm 21 is also shown.

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view similar to FIG. 4 but of an alternateembodiment of the present invention for a mitt 101 having hand portion104, reservoir 111 and nibs 102 whereby thumb section 130 with thumbcavity 115 is no longer reinforced or "rigidized" by a thick topsection. This construction may be of some advantage for smaller animalswhere more flexibility is desired or for gloves molded of more rigidgrades of rubber (or of a thermoplastic elastomer) that may be morerigid in general. In this embodiment, top 125 of thumb section 130 ofmitt 101 is no longer co-planar with top 126 of the palm section of mitt101.

FIG. 7 shows an alternate embodiment for a flexible brush 201 having arear side 201a co-extensive with a front palm side cleaning work surface201b. Brush 201 is a flexible body having one or more straps 240 forengaging the hand of a user 221 therein on rear side 201a of brush 201.Built-in fluid reservoir 211 extends within brush 201, and is capped bystopper 206 attached by strap 212 to brush 201. Fluid drops 222 aredischarged from slits 210 to animal 220, when internal pressure buildsup in reservoir 211 upon concave flexing of brush 201. Preferablybristle nibs 202 are arranged in denser concentric patterns 209 along anaxially extending mid-line portion of brush 201.

It is further noted that other modifications may be made to the presentinvention without departing from the scope as noted in the appendedclaims. For example, the cleaning mitt can be made with the unique,glove-length extending reservoir but with a conventional pattern ofbristle nibs. Furthermore, the mitt can alternatively be made with aconventional, smaller fluid reservoir, but with the unique denserpattern of bristle nibs extending preferably in concentric patternsalong a mid-line of the cleaning surface side of the mitt.

I claim:
 1. A grooming and washing mitt for a pet animal, said mittcomprising:a hollow flexible body having a flexible rear sideco-extensive with a flexible palm side cleaning surface so that saidhollow body is flexible with an open end for insertion of a hand intosaid body and a separate hollow thumb portion extending therefrom, saidthumb being of rigid construction to reduce the tendency of said mitt tocollapse and providing stability to the mitt during movement thereofalong a fur hide of the pet animal; a built-in fluid retaining reservoirfor discharging fluid from, said reservoir extending within said mittfrom a distal fingertip end to a proximal wrist end adjacent to saidopen end of said mitt, said reservoir having a plurality of dischargeports openable upon flexing of said mitt; said mitt having apredetermined denser pattern of flexible nibs on said palm side toengage pet hairs, to remove loose hairs, and to provide effectivemassage, said dense pattern of flexible nibs extending axially from saiddistal fingertip end to said proximal wrist end of said mitt and saiddense pattern of nibs extending medially along a mid-line of said mitt.2. The mitt as in claim 1 wherein said plurality of discharge portsextends through a large portion of said palm side of said mitt, saidports discharging cleaning fluid over said cleaning work surface of saidpalm side of said mitt.
 3. The mitt as in claim 1 wherein said fluiddischarge ports normally remain closed when no internal pressure isbuilt up and the palm is kept essentially flat, but open when said palmside of said mitt is flexed in a concave configuration, said flexing ofsaid mitt building up internal pressure within said reservoir fordischarging of said fluid therethrough.
 4. The mitt as in claim 1wherein said medially extending dense pattern of nibs includes aplurality of nib patterns having a central nib with further plurality ofconcentric circles of nibs, for massaging and removing hair snags andloose hairs when a circular motion of said mitt is used, wherein saiddense pattern of nibs provides a substantial force to be exerted againstthe hide of the animal without collapsing said nibs from a perpendiculardirection extending from said palm side work surface of said mitt. 5.The mitt as in claim 1 wherein said mitt further includes a reservoirfilling port and an integrally molded stopper removably attachable tosaid reservoir filling port.
 6. The mitt as in claim 1 furthercomprising a hanging tab for suspending said mitt therefrom.
 7. The mittas in claim 1 wherein said mitt is molded of rubber.
 8. A grooming andwashing mitt for a pet animal, said mitt comprising:a hollow flexiblebody having a flexible rear side co-extensive with a flexible front palmside cleaning work surface with an open end for insertion of a hand intosaid body and a separate hollow thumb portion extending therefrom havinga rigid thumb wall section to provide stability to the mitt duringmovement along a fur hide of the pet animal; a built-in fluid-retainingreservoir for discharging fluid therefrom, said reservoir extendingwithin said body from a distal fingertip end to a proximal wrist endadjacent to said open end of said body, said reservoir having aplurality of discharge ports openable upon flexing of said palm side ofsaid mitt; and said mitt having a predetermined pattern of flexible nibson said palm side to engage pet hairs.
 9. The mitt as in claim 8 whereinsaid plurality of discharge ports extends through a large portion ofsaid palm side of said mitt, said ports discharging cleaning fluid oversaid cleaning work surface of said palm side of said mitt.
 10. The mittas in claim 8 wherein said fluid discharge ports normally remain closedwhen no internal pressure is built up and the palm is kept essentiallyflat, but open when said palm side of said mitt is flexed in a concaveconfiguration, said flexing of said building up internal pressure withinsaid reservoir for discharging of said fluid therethrough.
 11. The mittas in claim 8 wherein said mitt further includes a reservoir fillingport and an integrally molded stopper removably attachable to saidreservoir filling port.
 12. The mitt as in claim 11 further comprising ahanging tab for suspending said mitt therefrom.
 13. The mitt as in claim8 wherein said mitt is molded of rubber.
 14. The mitt as in claim 13wherein said mitt is molded of rubber.